Chief Stipe

Exactly and the same group are yelling "Sundees Son must be on PED'S to break the world record by so many seconds"! Yet they neglect to mention that the first three were within less than half a second of each other. Or that a couple of weeks later Sundees Son gets run down and beaten!

I think you have slightly misunderstood. The RIB investigator leading the charge on INCA was involved in a major case of wrongful prosecution. That prosecution has been overturned by the courts. As for INCA there is evidence that a similar misalignment in joining the dots has occurred.

But the point is @Gammalite if the evidence isnt sufficient to prosecute successfully in the Criminal Court then it shouldn't be sufficient elsewhere. As for betting "stings" I hope you don't mean the good old fashioned setting up of a horse to win at a good price? Been party to a number of those.

As do you @the galah. I've read much of the social media commentary and the writings of many masquerading as journalists. What has become apparent to me is that there is a coordinated group within the industry that are targeting certain stables and licensed participants. For example it is clearly apparent that the same group that hides behind private social media is feeding the likes of @Archie Butterfly. The RIB and to a degree HRNZ through their incompetence have enabled this group. For example the wild and outlandish accusation of the use of PED'S could be dealt with very easily. Yet we hear nothing from the RIB or HRNZ. With the former it is in their best interests to maintain the perception that there are drugs in use that they cannot yet detect. Which quite frankly is utter bollocks.

Isn't the bigger question why didn't the RIB use their industry powers and the process available to them if they thought the drive was deliberately a bad one? THAT would have been the end of the matter.

It is fair to ask why but it isn't fair to infer that the reason those charged are allegedly seeking to suppress evidence is because they are guilty. There is an issue of justice, fairness and I'd say basic human rights. If the Police don't have sufficient evidence to prosecute and or succeed in Court then that should be the end of the matter. The RIB should not be allowed a second go through their own judicial process. Arguably they forgoed that opportunity when they engaged the Police. However if they do charge under the racing rules and process where they are Judge and Jury and penalise those involved then it will likely end up back in the High Court. Vis a vis the Sheryl Wigg case. That would be manifestly unfair and a waste of resources.

There is minimisation but it concerns the minimising of behaviour and actions of the RIB and the Police. The RIB engaged the Police on the basis that significant criminal fraud was occurring. It wasn't to identify who was using or supplying recreational drugs. Wire tapping, bugging and clandestine surveillance was undertaken to uncover the supposed fraud. The only points scored so far have been for activities other than the original objective. Should the entire industry or the entire community be subjected to the same kind of surveillance?

Meanwhile out country and in the provinces in Victoria: Prizemoney for standard country races will jump $2000 to $27,000 with premium provincial meetings to feature $37,500 prizemoney for every race, a rise of $2500 on this season.

Guineas boost headlines Victorian racing’s prizemoney surge www.racenet.com.au Victorian thoroughbred racing participants will compete for more than $314m in prizemoney next season. Racing Victoria’s latest cash injection sent prizemoney through the $300m barrier for the first time. Next season’s prizemoney will increase by $26.2m with that amount split between stake money and bonuses from the state’s breeding incentive schemes. However, prizemoney could rise even further in the second half of the season with RV to assess the sport’s financial performance in the second half of 2022 before deciding prizemoney for the Festival Racing in the autumn. Racing Victoria’s chief executive Giles Thompson said Racing NSW’s move to boost that state’s prizemoney from July 1 played no part in the organisation’s thinking. Thompson said RV had engaged in a consultation process lasting months before announcing the prizemoney upgrades. “We have been very consistent over the years that when we think about prizemoney in Victoria, we think about what’s the most important for Victorian racing,” Thompson said. “That’s the lens that we bring to it and we overlay that with what we think is sustainable in Victoria having made all the other various investments. “I don’t think necessarily that it’s a head-to-head competition between Victoria and New South Wales. “I think what’s important for Victorian racing is that we focus on what’s best for Victorian racing. We’ve done that over many decades and it’s as strong as it’s ever been.” The nation’s top three-year-olds will compete for $3m in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas in the spring. Picture: Michael Klein Under the plan, several spring features aside received significant prizemoney upgrades. The Caulfield Guineas will be worth $3m while the Manikato Stakes prizemoney will double to $2m. But owners, trainers and jockeys will compete for higher prizemoney at nearly all Victorian meetings next season. Prizemoney for standard country races will jump $2000 to $27,000 with premium provincial meetings to feature $37,500 prizemoney for every race, a rise of $2500 on this season. Night races run at Pakenham and Cranbourne across the warmer months will be worth $40,000 each in 2022/23. City prizemoney will also rise next season with most Saturday races to jump by $20,000 to $150,000 per race with the Pathway races, the ninth race of a city card to rise to $80,000. Metropolitan midweek prizemoney will jump 10 per cent to $55,000. The Manikato Stakes has doubled in prizemoney. Picture: Racing Photos via Getty Images Moonee Valley Friday night meetings will offer a minimum prizemoney of $60,000 per race, up from $50,000, next season. “It’s what we think is best for Victorian racing and that’s why we’ve taken the approach of spreading the increases right across the whole ecosystem,” Thompson said. “We think it’s really important not to just feed to the top end of town and make the Melbourne Cup Carnival special and bring it to a crescendo but also for the grassroots as well. “That’s what really feeds the 25,000 that are reliant on the sport in Victoria and the nearly 100,000 that participate in the sport.” Supercharged Cup carnival plan revealed – Gilbert Gardiner Racing Victoria has fired a broadside in the interstate horse racing wars, with a supercharged $30m Melbourne Cup Carnival including three “Champions” races on Stakes Day at Flemington with a combined $9 million in prizemoney. The Herald Sun can reveal the Victoria Racing Club will host the three $3m Group 1s – the top class of horse races – on November 5, taking in the Champions Sprint (1200m), Champions Mile (1600m) and Champions Stakes (2000m). Flemington’s new Champions branding will anger NSW authorities as they created Sydney’s The Championships autumn race series in 2014. The bitterness of the interstate rivalry was clear on Monday night when, in a direct attack on Victoria, Racing NSW rushed out a shot gun press release declaring Sydney’s Golden Eagle, a 1500m race restricted to four-year-old horses, will carry a $10m purse this year – $2m more than the Melbourne Cup. NSW racing has made increasingly desperate and expensive attempts to steal some of the gloss from Melbourne’s world-class calendar, highlighted by the Spring Racing Carnival. Racing Victoria will make a number of key announcements on Tuesday on top of the $3.5m boost to VRC Champions Stakes Day prizemoney. The $3m Champions Mile, formerly the Cantala Stakes, will be a weight-for-age race with the shift back to the second Saturday at Flemington, after being run on Derby Day the past six years. Jockey James McDonald after piloting Zaaki to victory in the Mackinnon Stakes. Picture: Michael Klein It along with the race dates for the 2022-23 season will be confirmed on Tuesday. The Herald Sun understands RV has also increased the minimum prizemoney for country and city races. The stallion-making Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, one of the three top flight races on October 29, has increased to $2m purse – up $500,000 – to sit next to the $2m Victoria Derby. VRC chairman Neil Wilson said Champions Stakes Day and increases to Group 1 prizemoney was an exciting development for the club and the broader racing industry. “VRC Champions Stakes Day has been years in the making, with the club pleased to be able to deliver on its vision for a significant grand finale to Cup Week,” Wilson said. “The Melbourne Cup Carnival is one of the world’s greatest racing events and we have four days of elite racing that will continue to attract horses from here and abroad. “The appeal of Cup Week stretches far and wide, with local and international spectators set to be captivated by the best of the best competing at Flemington. “The VRC thanks Racing Victoria and the VRC Board for its support to elevate prizemoney for the Melbourne Cup Carnival.” Home Affairs won last year’s Coolmore Stud Stakes at Flemington. Picture: George Sal-Racing Photos via Getty Images Prizemoney for the $8m Melbourne Cup and $1m VRC Oaks remains unchanged. The VRC has boosted the Group 2 Linlithgow Stakes to $500,000 – up from $300,000 last season – to match the $500,000 Carbine Club Stakes also on Derby Day. A proposed Linlithgow Stakes distance change – from 1200m to 1400m – has yet to be finalised. The changes, schedule and conditions, for the Champions Mile gives connections of Cox Plate horses two potential $3m targets 14 days after ‘the greatest two minutes in sport’. It also provides horses from the Group 2 Crystal Mile on October 22 (Cox Plate day) an extra seven days (14 total) to prepare for the Group 1 grand final – Champions Mile. The $3m Champions Stakes, registered as Mackinnon Stakes, already fits in neatly with the Cox Plate a fortnight earlier. Pre-post Cox Plate favourite Zaaki, who was sensationally scratched on race day last year with an elevated temperature, returned a fortnight later at Flemington to make amends winning the Mackinnon Stakes. INCREASED PRIZEMONEY FOR MELBOURNE CUP CARNIVAL Class Race Distance Prizemoney 2022-23 (change) Group 1 Darley Champions Sprint 1200m $3 (+$1m) Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes 1200m $2m (+$500,000) Group 2 TAB Linlithgow Stakes 1400m (tbc) $500,000 (+$200,000 VRC top up) Group 1 VRC Champions Stakes 2000m $3m (+$1m)

loveracing.nz The NZTR Board has committed to an exciting and innovative growth plan revealing a raft of initiatives today. Heading the announcement is a more than $7 million stakes increase which will see a strategic injection of stakes across 20 of New Zealand’s best performing racedays. This targets significant Group and Listed races across Iconic and Premier meetings. NZTR Chairman Cameron George said the Board’s aim is to provide opportunities to increase revenue, delivering bigger racing events on our best performing days. “These are our high-profile events which attract crowds and significant wagering interest,” he said. “By packaging these 20 best-performing events as New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing’s not-to-be-missed occasions which feature our best athletes – horse and human – we see an opportunity to grow and capitalise on that interest.” “Our Black type racing is critical to all sectors of the New Zealand industry, providing aspirational opportunities and we see these events as having the best cut-through to accelerate revenue growth. Not only in wagering, but by establishing them in the public eye as important events that underpin our sport in much the same way that other sports globally celebrate their majors,” George said. Minimum stakes will rise to $14,000 across the calendar, double what they were five years earlier. “The Board’s view is to slowly increase the minimum racing stakes over the next few seasons. Our intention is to also turn our focus to the middle-range stakes within the next year, or earlier, depending upon performance,” George said. Stake increases by the numbers Minimums $14,000 across the entire racing calendar A strategic injection of stakes across 20 of our best performing racedays Group 1 – minimums increase from $220,000 to $300,000 Group 2 – minimums increase from $110,000 to $140,000* Group 3 – minimums increase from $80,000 to $100,000* Listed – minimums increase from $60,000 to $80,000* Iconic meetings – minimums increase from $50,000 to $70,000 Premier meetings – minimums increase from $40,000 to $50,000 Targeted South Island increases of $400K in August, February, and March (Canterbury Grand National, Dunedin Gold Cup, Invercargill Gold Cup and Otago Southern Mile) *At Top 20 meetings. Group 1 races not held at Iconic or Premier meetings will be increased from $220,000 to $300,000. Group 2 races not held at Iconic or Premier meetings will be increased to $120,000. Group Three and Listed races not held at Iconic or Premier meetings will remain at current minimums. Infrastructure fund The Board has also committed $10,000,000 towards an infrastructure fund to allow for an initial five-year programme of necessary work to be undertaken at venues across the country. “This is an aspect of our industry which needs attention, investment, but also accountability,” George said. “The Board agrees that we will invest in this area, however we will also expect a professional response from the Clubs with regard to their track preparation and the recognition that providing a suitable track is a prerequisite when it comes to date allocation,” he said. George acknowledged that while this initial investment will require some careful planning around how and when the work is conducted, the Board is committed to providing investment now to benefit the industry’s long-term future. “The Board further commits to a floor of $4 million that at all times will be available specifically intended for the purpose of infrastructure,” he said. Sustainable fund injections The last two years have allowed NZTR to build a fund to protect our industry from a potential COVID shutdown and the impacts that might bring. The NZTR Board believes that some of this risk has subsided and is looking to spread these funds across the industry over the next five years. “This distribution will be conducted in a sustainable and sensible manner and, as with all of the increases, will remain subject to TAB NZ and NZTR wagering performance,” George said. “The spread will be across stakes, infrastructure, and professional development for industry participants through their respective Associations.” This funding will be in addition to NZTR’s BAU budget. Licence renewal rebate The licence renewal fees for the 2022-23 racing season will be funded by NZTR. Those who have already renewed their licences will receive a credit for the next season. “When considering how tirelessly our participants worked during the past two years to keep our industry afloat during a global pandemic, the Board was determined to reward that dedication,” George said. “I’m not sure whether anyone experienced a good day during this difficult period, so the Board agreed it was only fitting that we waive your fees for the next season” he said. Innovation Fund The Board has also decided that an Innovation Fund of $500,000 to all clubs, outside of those that will be conducting the 20 best performing race dates, will be made available again.

6 years since the investigation began and wire taps, bugging and the dawn raids were executed. I've seen photos of the RIB staff dressed in police vests, with walkie-talkies and with grins in their faces like they were going on a corporate bonding exercise. So far no direct prosecution related to Harness Racing activity arising from the INCA investigation. Over $15 million spent by the authorities, police and RIB - yet zip, nada, nothing! If the RIB do have a strong case within their gambit of responsibility why haven't they proceeded with charges? Meanwhile those with egg on their faces keep feeding the journalists and continue with their ex failed cop routine of hounding their targets until they break. What's the agenda? To bring Harness Racing to its knees? Who benefits from that?

Then why haven't they done it already?

So your half truths are right?

Do you have anything to contribute other than your personal crusade against one poster?

So the few remaining remnants of this expensive debacle are going to possibly go to trial in September 2022. 6 years after the initial investigation began?

Bit you're not sure.

www.racenet.com.au Jimmy Cassidy says the 1992 Stradbroke Handicap is one of the great editions of the race. He would know, seeing he had the best view of all of it. The name Rough Habit has become synonymous with the Stradbroke thanks to his weaving, last-to-first booming finish, which saw Cassidy steal victory from the jaws of defeat to go back-to-back and etch his name into the history books. Three decades on, Cassidy says the now-famous ride is one of his best ever, and remembers the vivid details of the day, with his champion galloper dealt a seemingly impossible hand – 58.5 kgs and barrier 24. Faced with a wall of tiring horses at the top of the straight, Cassidy elected to weave a passage through the inside and it eventually paid off, knocking off Chris Munce on Barossa Boy in what is regarded as the best-ever Stradbroke ride. “It was quite funny, I spoke at the Carbine Club luncheon on the Friday with (trainer) John Wheeler, and I tipped him to win the Stradbroke – I just said he has 58.5 kgs, he has to go back-to-back and he has 24 alley, he has everything against him but he will still win,” Cassidy told News Corp. “Our plan was always to go back, he was a back marker and we had to from the alley. It was a waiting game, that’s all it was. I couldn’t go around them and win, he had to have luck so I rode him for that.” As it turns out, there was more than luck involved, with Cassidy’s homework on every single runner before the race paying dividends when he needed it most. “When the horses are tiring, they usually wander out a bit so the luck was on the inside. I thought I would take every inside run, it panned out perfectly,” he said. “The main thing you are looking for is an uninterrupted run, you can’t afford to get stopped because he had nine stone on his back and he’s coming from 20 lengths off them. “I knew the horse well and I knew he could run sectionals and his last 600m that day was phenomenal, let alone his last 200m. “I was looking for runs where I wasn’t going to get stopped and when I switched inside over the last 80m, it was the winning move. “He gave me everything, it was amazing to be part of something like that, it was one of my great rides to be honest, it would be in my top five of all time. “It was a full field of 20-0dd runners so I was going to have to be eight or 10 deep to go around them on the corner, it would have taken four or five lengths off him, I thought it’d be impossible to win doing that. “There were no slouches in the race, Barossa Boy and Schillachi, it was a good Stradbroke so the main thing was an uninterrupted run – it is like any race, let alone a Group 1.” Munce still cringes 30 years on about the race that got away. “I did, I thought I was home,” he said. “He (Barossa Boy) was flying that year, when we straightened up I thought we were going all the way. Jimmy Cassidy would come back to win the Doomben Cup on Rough Habit in 1993. Picture: News Corp Australia. “Because he (Cassidy) was back to the inside, I didn’t hear him, he came through so quick – that’s just how ‘Roughie’ used to race, the quick sprint at the end of the race. “Barossa Boy was my first Group 1 winner and I beat Rough Habit in the Doomben 10,000 before the Stradbroke. “It was across the road at Doomben and it was a handicap back then so when we went back across the road for the Stradbroke, Barossa Boy got re-handicapped and Roughie turned the tables on us.” In a world with strict whip rules and a changed style of riding, could Cassidy’s win be replicated in 2022? “If you have the right horse,” Cassidy laughed. “There’s not a lot of horses around of his quality around now. “I didn’t flog him, I probably only hit him in the last 100m because he was making ground that quick, under the current rules he would still beat them now. “In big races you can’t afford to get held up, you only get one crack at it – 1400m so you have 81 seconds to make all the right moves. “It is the difference between a good jockey and an average jockey. Good jockeys make their own luck and poor ones don’t seem to have luck, they find ways of getting held up.”

Back to decisions search Otaki-Maori RC 6 May 2022 – R6 (heard at Cambridge 1 June 2022) – Wiremu Pinn ID: RIB9284 Respondent(s): Wiremu Pinn - Apprentice Jockey Applicant: Racing Integrity Board Adjudicators: Mr Murray McKechnie (Chairman) and Mr Noel McCutcheon Persons Present: Mr Daniel Miller - Licensed Trainer, Mr John Oatham - Chief Stipendiary Steward, Mr Brady Jones - Stipendiary Steward Information Number: A14537 Decision Type: Adjudicative Decision Charge: Improper use of the whip Rule(s): 638(3)(e) Plea: Not Admitted Stewards Report Results Animal Name: POSH POROTENE Code: Thoroughbred Race Date: 06/05/2022 Race Club: Otaki-Maori Racing Club Race Location: Otaki Racecourse - Te Roto Road, Otaki, 5512 Race Number: R6 Hearing Date: 01/06/2022 Hearing Location: Cambridge Outcome: Proved Penalty: Apprentice Jockey Wiremu Pinn is suspended for 5 months DECISION OF ADJUDICATIVE COMMITTEE Dated this 1st day of June 2022 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. Mr Wiremu Pinn is a Class B Apprentice Jockey. He is charged that on the 6th of May this year at the Otaki-Maori Racing Club meeting at Otaki he breached Rule 638(3)(e) in that it is alleged he used the whip in an improper manner on two occasions just prior to the finish line. Mr Pinn was riding a horse Posh Porotene. Mr Pinn had ridden this horse on five previous occasions and on three of those occasions the horse had won its race. 1.2. Mr Pinn denies the charge and the Adjudicative Committee has today heard evidence from Mr Oatham, the Chief Stipendiary Steward and from Mr Pinn and his employer Mr Daniel Miller Licensed Trainer based in Matamata. 2. THE EVIDENCE 2.1. The Adjudicative Committee has seen films of the race: from front view, rear view and side view. It has also seen the whole of the race which was run over 2,200 metres. The films demonstrate that the horse was very slow away from the gates some 10 lengths behind the second to last horse. The horse hung out throughout the race although she did corner around the 400 metre mark without particular difficulty. Turning into the straight the horse began to move out again from the running rail. It was Mr Pinn’s evidence that the Jockey immediately to his outside Mr Lemmy Douglas was, to quote Mr Pinn ‘screaming at me’. The film shows that the horses were in fact some distance apart. Posh Porotene was continuing to move out towards the centre of the track. The essential allegation is that the horse had no prospect of winning the race and actually finished 9 of 11 starters some 12 lengths behind the winner and that just prior to the finishing line Mr Pinn hit the horse with force on two occasions and that the nature of this amounted to improper use of the whip. 2.2. Mr Pinn said that the position he found himself in was that he believed that the horse might not go around the corner following the winning post. He said that his left arm was very tired from trying to keep the horse straight throughout the race and that he used the whip in order to try and ensure that the horse did not run out further or run off the track. 2.3. The films demonstrate very graphically that the two blows that were struck by Mr Pinn were hard and were aimed to hit the horse on the neck particularly the first hit which was close to the horse’s head. The second hit was somewhat lower nearer the shoulder. 2.4. The Adjudicative Committee was told that there was subsequently a veterinary examination. Nothing was found to be amiss and Mr Pinn told the Adjudicative Committee that there were no welt marks found on the horse. 3. DISCUSSION 3.1. While it is clear that Posh Porotene was a difficult ride on the day the Adjudicative Committee is troubled by the strength of the blows struck by Mr Pinn. He had earlier tapped the horse behind the saddle but the two blows which give rise to the allegations at issue were entirely different. They were delivered with significant force. Mr Pinn took the reins into one hand and struck these blows with his right arm. 3.2. It is the Adjudicative Committee’s view that notwithstanding the difficulty in riding Posh Porotene the two blows struck were much more forceful than could be justified. They have the appearance of the Jockey somehow intending to punish the horse. The whip could have been used with much less force than was demonstrated in the films. 3.3. The Adjudicative Committee is persuaded on the evidence that it has seen and on the explanations given by Mr Oatham and Mr Pinn that what occurred was inexcusable and did amount to an improper use of the whip. 3.4. It follows from what has just been said that the Adjudicative Committee finds that the allegation made against Mr Pinn has been established and the charge is proven. 4. PENALTY 4.1. The Adjudicative Committee has heard submissions on penalty from both Mr Oatham and Mr Pinn. 4.2. Mr Oatham points to Mr Pinn’s record. This is most unattractive. Mr Pinn has previous convictions which relate to animal welfare. One of these involved a charge of improper riding in 2021 when he was suspended for three weeks. In October 2021 he was convicted of improper use of the whip. That involved turning the whip and hitting the horse with the handle. The initial period of suspension was for three months. That was reduced on Appeal to two months. Mr Pinn has been employed by various stables and Trainers throughout his career since 2018. He worked at Te Akau Stables, then for the leading Taranaki Trainer Alan Sharrock, thereafter for the Ken Kelso Stable in Matamata and more recently with Mr Miller in Matamata since October 2020. It is Mr Oatham’s submission that the offending on this occasion was more serious than that involving the improper use of the whip in October 2021 for which there was a two month suspension. 4.3. Mr Pinn says in mitigation that this was a difficult ride. The Adjudicative Committee recognises that. Mr Pinn says further that he endeavoured to straighten the horse with a tap behind the saddle earlier in the straight but that that was not effective and it was his position that the only way that he could keep the horse from running further towards the centre of the track or off the track or perhaps not around the corner was to strike it in front of the saddle. As observed earlier the Adjudicative Committee is particularly troubled by the strength of the blows which were struck and where they hit the horse. 4.4. Mr Oatham contends that a significant period of suspension is appropriate and that it should be for a period longer than that which was imposed for the improper use of the whip earlier referred to. He points to this being the third Rule breached by Mr Pinn which involves animal welfare. These breaches have occurred over a relatively short period of time. Mr Pinn is 23 years old. His conduct towards horses is of real concern to the Adjudicative Committee. 4.5. In mitigation the Adjudicative Committee does acknowledge that Posh Porotene was a difficult ride on this day. Against that however the Adjudicative Committee must recognise Mr Pinn’s very unattractive record with particular reference to animal welfare issues. The film demonstrates as earlier remarked the strength of the blows that were struck. The Adjudicative Committee has reached the view that even making appropriate allowance for the difficulty of the ride a significant period of suspension must be imposed and that will be for five months. We now need to hear from the parties as to when that suspension should commence. 4.6. Mr Pinn advises that he has obligations today at Cambridge and at Waverley on the 9th of June. The suspension will commence thereafter from the conclusion of racing of the 9th of June 2022. That will take the period of suspension to the conclusion of racing on the 9th of November 2022. 5. COSTS 5.1. It is the usual practice where a breach of the Rules is proven is for an Adjudicative Committee to award some costs in favour of the RIB and for the Licence Holder to make some contribution towards the costs incurred with assembling the Adjudicative Committee. 5.2. This hearing has been held on a raceday at Cambridge. Mr Oatham has had to travel from the South Island but that is not something for which Mr Pinn should be penalised. The Adjudicative Committee is of the view that given the extensive period of suspension that has been imposed which will obviously impact upon Mr Pinn’s income no costs should be awarded in those circumstances either in favour of the RIB or in respect of the costs incurred by assembling the Adjudicative Committee. 6. ADDENDUM 6.1. Following the hearing and before the decision had been typed up an email was received from Mr Mason Stevens. Mr Stevens trains in partnership with Mr Miller. The email from Mr Stevens advises that he had been unable to attend the hearing as he had to travel to Awapuni for racing at that venue on 2nd June. Further that Mr Pinn had commitments at the Ruakaka race meeting on Saturday the 11th of June for the Marsh stable. He advised that Mr Pinn was not aware of those rides. Mr Stevens sought to have the period of suspension commence following racing on the 11th of June. The Adjudicative Committee has considered the request made by Mr Stevens. A period of deferment has already been granted until the conclusion of racing on the 9th of June. Further the events which led to the serious charge against Mr Pinn occurred as long ago as the 6th of May. Moreover there is ample time for the Marsh stable to obtain a replacement Jockey of Jockeys for Mr Pinn on the 11th of this month. It follows from what has just been said that the deferment request is not granted and the Adjudicative Committee reaffirms that the suspension will commence following the conclusion of racing on the 9th of June. DATED this 1st day of June 2022 Murray McKechnie Chairman Signed pursuant to Rule 1007(5) Decision Date: 01/06/2022 Publish Date: 04/06/2022

So the "rumour mill" was wrong?

At last common sense has prevailed but at what cost to the industry? Millions of dollars down the drain. Surely some heads must roll at the RIB now. With a change in culture to follow. We watch the new CEO of the RIB with interest.

Sheryl Wigg free to train and drive 1 June 2022 , News Trainer-driver Sheryl Wigg has had her licences re-instated, after being disqualified earlier this year. In February Wigg was disqualified for one year and seven months after admitting charges of administering a substance to three horses before they were due to race at Alexandra Park. The disqualification came into effect on February 17 2022 and was to conclude on September 17 2023. She has since lodged an appeal with the High Court. The High Court has indicated it will hear the matter in August. Until that hearing she has been granted a stay of penalty and her Licence to Train and Advanced Amateur Driver’s Licence have been reinstated.

So basically you are only guessing. At the end of the day I'm sure Te Akau's model of operation is not without some risk. To date their yearling syndicates have been over subscribed. So they have a proven and attractive product to sell. The reality is if Te Akau pack up and leave or one day struggle to syndicate their horses then the industry will be well and truly stuffed.